Alright – so today we’ve got the honor of introducing you to Colleen Cook. We think you’ll enjoy our conversation, we’ve shared it below.

Colleen, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Alright, so you had your idea and then what happened? Can you walk us through the story of how you went from just an idea to executing on the idea

We didn’t set out to build a CRM for nonprofits; we set out to transform how nonprofits work.

After a decade in the nonprofit sector, I joined Vinyl Marketing, a marketing and consulting agency for nonprofit organizations. Our strategies were groundbreaking, often doubling or even quadrupling our clients’ fundraising results, which fueled our rapid growth.

However, it became clear that our clients could achieve even better outcomes if they fully implemented our strategies. The marketing components drove their success, but data strategy often fell short. Their CRMs couldn’t serve as a complete source of truth, leaving crucial insights untapped.

This pervasive problem inspired us to act. Nonprofits were making critical resource decisions without a full picture of what was working or where opportunities existed. Addressing this challenge felt transformative.

We were fortunate to have a team that shared our vision for HighTide. The project attracted exceptional talent with expertise in fundraising, data, marketing, CRMs, and AI. As we bootstrapped HighTide’s development, our team worked tirelessly, often through nights and weekends, building not just a product but a brand and a business.

A key lesson during this period was embracing iteration. In tech, launching a minimum viable product (MVP) is essential to learn from real user feedback. We adopted this mindset across our business, brand, and marketing efforts, too. Within a year, we launched numerous website iterations, evolved our brand visuals and messaging, and refined our strategies based on lead behavior and results. Each change brought us closer to serving our audience effectively.

Colleen, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

Working in the nonprofit sector for 15 years, I’ve been inspired by the profound impact these organizations have. Effective fundraising can transform lives, and helping nonprofit leaders become more efficient is deeply rewarding.

At HighTide, we’re a team of passionate experts who share a vision of empowering nonprofits. Many of us have decades of experience with nonprofit tech, bringing our own lists of challenges and ideas to address. Together, we’ve shaped HighTide into a product that brings clarity to nonprofit leaders about where to allocate resources for the greatest impact.

HighTide is the only CRM that tracks “non-CRM” data, such as spreadsheets and external databases, enabling organizations to connect insights like never before.

In my personal life, I’m married to Mike, who is also a nonprofit leader, and a mom of three daughters in elementary and middle school. Founding HighTide has been a crucible of growth, teaching me the value of faith in leadership. Spiritual disciplines and embracing challenges have been pivotal in my journey.

Can you share one of your favorite marketing or sales stories?

A few years ago, a university client approached our agency with a feasibility study that capped their campaign goal at $30 million, though they needed $50 million. They decided to aim for $50 million anyway, and we flipped the script. Instead of following traditional nonprofit fundraising practices, we went public immediately and focused on gathering stories rather than donations.

This bold strategy led to over one thousand stories being shared and tracked. The result? The university hit their $50 million goal 18 months early and ultimately raised over $100 million.

Disrupting the status quo can unlock transformative results. Great marketing isn’t just about meeting needs—it’s about inspiring deeper motivations that drive people to action. This approach can lead to results that far exceed expectations.

Any stories or insights that might help us understand how you’ve built such a strong reputation?

Our reputation grew through word-of-mouth and our clients’ successes. The nonprofit space fosters collaboration rather than competition, allowing good ideas and approaches to spread quickly.

By sharing our success stories at conferences and events, our network expanded organically. Ultimately, building a great brand experience and consistently over-delivering on promises were key to establishing trust and credibility in the market.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://hightide.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hightidesoftware/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/hightidesoftware
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hightide-software
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@HighTideSoftware?app=desktop